What is the Greatest Strength for the Philadelphia Phillies This Season?

As we get closer to September in the MLB, what is the greatest strength for the Philadelphia Phillies this season?

Aug 26, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Houston Astros at Citizens Bank Park. / Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies are leading the National League East this season thanks to a good combination of strong hitting and a great pitching staff. 

Due to a lot of injuries to the Atlanta Braves, the Phillies should be the NL East Champions barring a major collapse, but Philadelphia likely has their eyes on much bigger goals. After losing a tough series in the NLCS last year, the Phillies came out and had an excellent start to the season. While they have dealt with some injuries and key players missing time, the hot start has kept them afloat. 

One of the reasons for the strong season and the success over the past few seasons has been the pitching staff for the Phillies. Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola have been a dynamic duo in the postseason the last few years, and Philadelphia has also developed some other good starters. 

Recently, Zachary Rymer of Bleacher Report spoke about the ability of the Phillies to develop and have a strong starting rotation as their greatest strength. 

“The Phillies are another team that knows all about big swings, and the ones they've taken on Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber have certainly paid off. There's also the one on Zack Wheeler, though he's but one part of their strongest asset: starting pitching.”

“The Philadelphia rotation isn't the best in MLB, yet it is among the industry leaders with its 3.52 ERA and 739.1 innings. Buying Wheeler helped, but he would only be making so much of a difference if the Phillies hadn't also developed Aaron Nola, Ranger Suárez and Cristopher Sánchez from within.”

Come playoff time, pitching is always key to having success. The Phillies certainly have some big names on offense, like Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, J.T. Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber, and Alec Bohm, but it is the pitching that shines most of the time. 

The combination of Nola and Wheeler has helped the Phillies achieve a lot of success in the playoffs, and now they have a couple of other good arms in Ranger Suarez and Christopher Sanchez, making names for themselves. 

Sanchez and Suarez have each had excellent years, as Sanchez has totaled 9 wins and 3.51 ERA, while Suarez has totaled 11 wins and a 2.82 ERA. Pairing these two with the aces of the staff gives the Phillies four legitimate starting pitchers to use in a playoff series. Not too many teams will be able to match that, and it will give the Phillies a nice advantage come October.